Many amongst us have whiled away a perfectly good Saturday afternoon in the pub, sinking pints and carousing until the sun goes down. But if you prefer your daytime drinking sessions to have a bit more movement and challenge to them, London is only too happy to oblige. The Bermondsey Beer Mile is a challenge worthy of any self-respecting beer fiend, stretching well over a mile through the streets and railway arches of South London. At the end of it lies happiness, hoppiness, and eternal glory. And more than a few sore heads in the morning, most likely…
Now, before we get down to business, there are a few things to keep in mind:
- Saturday is the ideal day to head to the Mile. Some venues operate relatively limited opening hours, and might not even open at all on weekdays.
- There are two directions of attack, but this guide opts to tackle it by travelling along it from the west to the east. This allows you to make a quick diversion and kick things off with a very important food stop at Maltby Street Market. After all, you should never go boozing on an empty stomach.
- Keep an eye on the daily menu and specials at each venue. Many of the Bermondsey Beer Mile venues serve a rotating selection, so our recommendations might have already been replaced when you visit! Fortunately, each venue boasts passionate staff who are always ready and willing to help you choose.
- Make sure you keep hydrated along the way!
- Be mindful of how much you’re drinking – if you want to try a lot of places, consider maybe only having half pints or even 1/3 pints at each venue.
Right, now let’s get started along the Bermondsey Beer Mile!
Stop 1: Southwark Brewing Co
Image: @southwarkbrewing, via IG
Things kick off on the Bermondsey beer mile with a pretty traditional approach to brewing. Southwark Brewing Co applies old-school know-how, technique, and tradition to brewing modern craft beer styles. Our recommendation: kick things off with their London Pale Ale or Bankside Blonde ale on cask – a nice sessionable way to start the mile. But if you need your beer carbonated and cold(er), grab a citrussy Wish You Were Here… pale ale.
📍 46 Druid Street, SE1 2EZ.
🕰️ Tuesday, Thursday, & Friday: 5-10pm; Saturday: 12-7pm; Sunday: 1-5pm.
Stop 2: Kanpai London Sake Brewery & Taproom
Image: @kanpailondon, via IG
Yup, it’s already time for a break from the beer. The UK’s first-ever sake brewery and taproom first opened in Peckham but recently relocated to its new London-Bridge-abutting location. Whet your appetite with some of Kanpai’s delicious offerings, with ten sakes on tap. If you need a cold pint, though, they’ve got you sorted with their KANPAI collaboration beer as well as a selection of local craft beers.
📍 48 Druid Street, SE1 2EZ.
🕰️ Wednesday & Thursday: 5-10pm; Friday: 5-10:30pm; Saturday: 12-10:30pm; Sunday: 12-7pm.
Stop 3: The Doodle Bar
Unlike many other venues on this list, The Doodle Bar isn’t specifically connected to any breweries or drink producers. But they do have a pretty stonking beer selection, raucous party vibes, and walls that you can draw doodle all over. Beer in hand, you can leave your mark on this Bermondsey bar before heading out to experience the rest of the Bermondsey Beer Mile.
📍 60 Druid Street, SE1 2EZ.
🕰️ Wednesday: 5-11pm; Thursday: 12-11pm; Friday & Saturday: 12pm-12am.
Stop 4: London Beer Factory – The Barrel Project
This one is one of the most unique spots on the mile, thanks to the 100s of barrels that line the walls and fill (almost) every bit of spare space. But fret not, there is still plenty of room for you and your mates to grab a drink. The Barrel Project merges traditional and modern brewing approaches that coalesce into truly unique beers. You’ll find a wide selection of LBF beers on tap, alongside guest beers from a variety of breweries.
📍 80 Druid Street, SE1 2HQ.
🕰️ Wednesday-Friday: 4-10:45pm; Saturday & Sunday: 12-10:45pm.
Stop 5: Fabal Beerhall
Image: @fabalbeers, via IG
One of the most recent additions to the Bermondsey Beer Miles comes courtesy of Hiver Beers, which is found just around the corner from this lager-celebrating beer hall. The beer selection skews heavily to the light and quaffable side of things, showcasing “the best of English craft Lagers”, but they also serve wine and soft drinks to keep everyone in your party happy.
📍 88 Druid Street, SE1 2HQ.
🕰️ Thursday & Friday: 5-10pm; Saturday: 3-11pm; Sunday: 3-8pm.
Stop 6: These Days Aperitivo Bar
Ready for another break from the beer? What do you mean, not yet? Just trust us, you’ll want to give the spritz-y delights at the These Days Aperitivo Bar a try. Since the whole point of an aperitivo is to prepare your stomach for a night of eating, maybe it will also work to prepare you for a day of drinking? And, anyway, what goes better with this recent sunny weather than a spritz?
📍 100 Druid Street, SE1 2HQ.
🕰️ Wednesday to Friday: 6-11pm; Saturday: 2-10:30pm; Sunday: 2-8pm.
Stop 7: Hiver Beers
Take a right when you exit These Days, head under the archway, and you’ll find yourself on your way to Hiver Beer’s Bermondsey taproom. You’ve heard of mead, and you’ve drunk some beer – but have you ever had beer that highlights the flavours of British honey? Hiver’s ‘honey beers’ are a distinctly unique offering in London – and they sure do leave you with a bit of a buzz. When you leave, you have two choices: stop off at Maltby Street Market and fill your rumbling tummy with food, or duck back under the archway again, and head to the next beer-y stop…
📍 56 Stanworth Street, SE1 3NY.
🕰️ Friday: 3-9:30pm; Saturday: 11am-9:30pm; Sunday: 12–7pm.
Stop 8: Anspach & Hobday – The Arch House
Image: @thearchhouse_ah, via IG
This is the stop that stout fans and adorers of a certain toucan-fronted beer (that rhymes with shminess) have been waiting for. No, not because they serve the famed dark beer. Instead, they have a craft-y alternative that’s slowly rivalling the dark beer’s supremacy. Anspach & Hobday have received lashings of praise for their ultra-smooth nitro porter, London Black, and here’s your chance to find out why.
What’s the difference between a porter and a stout? Erm… Don’t ask questions – just quaff the delicious liquid. And with 12 taps to choose from at their Arch House, there’s still plenty to try even if you don’t fancy a pint of roast-y, toast-y, lightly chocolate-y goodness.
📍 118 Druid Street, SE1 2HH.
🕰️ Wednesday: 5-9:30pm; Thursday: 5-10pm; Friday: 2-10pm; Saturday: 11am-10pm; Sunday: 1-7pm.
Stop 9: Dutch Taproom – It ain’t much, if it ain’t Dutch
Image: @dutch.taproom.it.aint.much, via IG
Can you guess what this place might specialise in based on its name? Erm… Dutch beer… Obviously. The Dutch Taproom brings Holland’s rich history of brewing and numerous craft breweries to London with an impressive array of drinks. You’ll be hard pressed to choose from them all, but as usual, the bar staff are here to help with recommendations for any tastes.
Be forewarned, you’re about to do very little walking between venues as you wander down Enid Street. You’ve now reached the core central section of the Bermondsey Beer Mile. Keep your eye out for food vendors along the way, which pop up outside the taprooms on Saturdays.
📍 67-68 Enid Street, SE16 3RD.
🕰️ Wednesday & Thursday: 4-10pm; Friday: 3-10pm; Saturday: 12-10pm; Sunday: 12-9pm.
Stop 10: Moor Beer Company Vaults
Image: @moorvaults, via IG
More? Moor? Do you want more Moor? Well, of course you do, because it’s the next stop on your voyage along the mile! The upbeat party atmosphere at Moor Beer’s Bermondsey taproom is sure to rejuvenate anyone who is starting to feel the effects of the drinks. They serve an immense selection of natural, live beer. In fact, they were among the early proponents of all-natural and hazy beer.
📍 71 Enid Street, SE16 3RA.
🕰️ Wednesday: 5-10:30pm; Thursday: 4-10:30pm; Friday & Saturday: 12-10:30pm; Sunday 12-6pm.
Stop 11: Gosnells Bar
Image: @gosnellsoflondon, via IG
So you’ve had honey beer, you’ve had sake, and maybe a few spritzes, now, how about some mead? But this isn’t the cloyingly sweet stuff that you might think of. Gosnells’ sparkling mead is bright and zippy and fits neatly into the beer mile’s offerings while satisfying beer and cider drinkers alike. And mead drinkers too, of course! There are also beer on tap, but a visit to a meadery taproom without at least sampling the honeyed wares would be a bit of a waste.
📍 72 Enid Street, SE16 3RA.
🕰️ Thursday: 4-10:30 pm; Friday: 3-10:30pm; Saturday: 1-10:30pm; Sunday: 2-8pm.
Stop 12: Cloudwater – 73 Enid Street
Image: @73enidst, via IG
Cloudwater’s London taproom is the beating heart of the Bermondsey Beer Mile. Even on a quiet day, it’s likely to be one of the busiest places around. Cloudwater is one of the UK’s best producers of extremely hop-forward beer. The London taproom for the Manchester brewery serves up some of the best prices around (pint for under a fiver during Happy Hour!) and the best brews around. Honestly, if you called it quits here to spend the rest of the day in the pastel environs, we wouldn’t blame you!
📍 73 Enid Street, SE16 3RA.
🕰️ Monday: 5-10pm; Tuesday-Thursday: 3-10pm; Friday & Saturday: 1-10pm; Sunday 1-8pm.
Stop 13: Bianca Road Brew Co
Image: @biancaroadbrewco, via IG
There are still more places to check out along this stretch of the Bermondsey Beer Mile – one of which is the Bianca Road brewery and taproom. Spread across two venues (the taproom itself and the Enid Street Tavern two doors down), it’s an impressively vast space with plenty of room for everyone to settle down with an American-influenced craft beer. Be warned, Bermondsey adventurers, Enid Street isn’t done with you yet!
📍 Bianca Road Brew Co. 83-84 Enid Street, SE16 3RD.
🕰️ Wednesday & Thursday: 4-10pm; Friday: 4-11pm; Saturday: 1-11pm; Sunday: 1-6pm.
📍 Enid Street Tavern 87 Enid Street, SE16 3RA.
🕰️ Tuesday: 5-10pm; Wednesday: 4-10pm; Thursday: 4-10pm; Friday & Saturday: 1-11pm; Sunday: 1-6pm;
Stop 14: Craft Beer Junction
Image: @craftbeerjunction, via IG
If Bianca Road is influenced by America, Craft Beer Junction brings a properly authentic taste of America’s legendary beer scene to the Bermondsey Beer Mile. That’s because the passionate owner air-freights in only the freshest and most hyped of American beers – sometimes for their first ever appearance outside of the States! There’s a particular emphasis on the haziest IPAs and over-the-top imperial stouts. But they don’t only gaze fondly across the ocean – they also make sure to showcase plenty of the UK’s most exciting breweries, and lesser-known breweries from around Europe as well.
📍 86 Enid Street, SE16 3RA.
🕰️ Wednesday & Thursday: 4:30-10:30pm; Friday: 4:30-11pm; Saturday: 12:15-11pm; Sunday: 2-9pm.
Stop 15: Mash Paddle Brewery
Image: @mashpaddlebrewery, via IG
Now, you’re not going to get a chance to experience the main draw of Mash Paddle if you’re doing the Bermondsey Beer Mile. Mash Paddle was primarily opened as a space for beer enthusiasts and wannabe brewers to try out their hand at beer brewing experiences. However, it’s still an important stop on the beer mile thanks to the attached taproom, which serves its own beers alongside an extensive selection of craft beers.
📍 92 Enid St, SE16 3RA.
🕰️ Thursday: 5-10pm; Friday: 3-11pm; Saturday: 12-11pm; Sunday: 2-8pm.
Stop 16: The Kernel Spa Road
Image: @thekernelsparoad, via IG
Is The Kernel the most iconic of London’s craft breweries? Arguably yes. This stalwart of the craft beer scene, and an OG venue on the mile, has built a reputation for doing things their way and never compromising. They recently moved into a shiny new site just around the corner from the brewery, but the passion and wide array of styles remain. Here you can try everything from brown ales to grisettes, table beers, imperial stouts, and beyond.
Now, are you ready to walk off some of that booze? Because the next stop is a bit further away than you’ve become accustomed to.
📍 132 Spa Road, SE16 3AE.
🕰️ Wednesday-Friday: 12-10pm; Saturday: 11am-9pm; Sunday: 12-8pm.
Stop 17: The Outpost – Three Hills Brewing
Image: @theoutpostbermondsey, via IG
After a bit of a stroll, you’ll end up at Three Hills Brewing’s micro-brewery and taproom. Now, this isn’t their main brewing site, despite all the brewing apparatus that you can see. Instead, this is a place where the Northamptonshire-based brewery brews super-limited one-off brews, as well as serving up plenty of their other beers. They’ve also got the cosiest seating area tucked away on an upstairs mezzanine. Be careful you don’t fall asleep on the couches if you’ve made it this far!
📍 7 Almond Road, SE163LR.
🕰️ Thursday: 5-11pm; Friday: 4-11pm; Saturday: 1-11pm.
Stop 18: Battersea Brewery Substation
Well, this is it. If you’re still standing, congratulations: you’ve reached the end of the Bermondsey Beer Mile! (Unless you elected to do it in the opposite direction, in which case, congratulations: you’ve just started the Bermondsey Beer Mile!)
This little sibling (or side hustle brewery, depending on who you ask) to the Battersea-based brewery is open to punters for just one day a week. So if you want to hit up every single spot on the mile, be sure to come on a Saturday, and time your arrival for its limited opening hours. While you’re there, you can sip on tank-fresh beers amidst the beer tanks themselves. Bliss!
📍 8 Almond Road, SE16 3LR.
🕰️ Saturday: 12-9pm. (Yup, that’s it!)
So, there you have it. You either made it all the way to the end, or you faltered along the way and had to sit down for a spell. Either way, you’re sure to have had some delicious beers and enjoyed a cracking time along the way!